This battle made me think more than usual because of the Tis But Scratches Modifier. Every unit having Cripple changes how I see fights since health keeps going down permanently. It is not just about dealing damage anymore but it can also affect the enemy max health which you can use for different strategies. In the battle, because I had to adjust because of limited unit choices which made me focus more on stats than abilities. I ended up caring more about keeping my frontline alive than trying to do something fancy.

Modifiers

Tis But Scratches - All Units have the Cripple ability.
Double Strike is really strong in this modifier because it applies Cripple twice every round. Even if the damage is not that high, the value comes from reducing max health faster. I like using units with Double Strike in this modifier because they scale better as the battle goes longer. It feels like they are doing more than what their stats show.

Good Abilities to use in Tis But ScratchesModifier

Double Strike - Unit attacks twice each round.
Double Strike is really strong in this modifier because it applies Cripple twice every round. Even if the damage is not that high, the value comes from reducing max health faster. I like using units with Double Strike in this modifier because they scale better as the battle goes longer. It feels like they are doing more than what their stats show.

Flank - If the unit with this ability is in the first position, then the unit in the second position gains the Reach ability
Flank is one of those abilities that becomes more interesting here. It allows the second unit to attack using Reach which means more chances to apply Cripple. If you pair it with units that have multiple attacks like Great Bear Druid's melee and magic then it gets even better. I like this combo because it turns a simple formation into something more aggressive without changing too much.

Dodge - Has an increased chance of evading Melee or Ranged attacks.
Dodge becomes very valuable in this modifier because avoiding attacks means avoiding Cripple completely. If the attack does not land then there is no damage and no max health reduction. I feel more comfortable using units with Dodge or high speed because they can survive longer than expected. It is one of the few ways to slow down how fast you lose health.

Cleanse - Removes all negative effects on the Unit in the first position on the friendly team
Cleanse is very useful but also feels limited at the same time. It can remove Cripple from the front unit which helps your tank stay strong longer. But since every enemy unit applies Cripple it comes back quickly in the next round. I still like having Cleanse because even a small reset can give you one more round to survive.

Taunt - All enemy Units target this Unit (if they are able to)
Taunt is a simple but effective way to control the fight in this modifier. If all enemy units target one unit then you can protect your important backline units. I think this is helpful if you have a strong tank that can take hits for a while. Even if that unit goes down it gives your other units more time to apply Cripple on the enemy.

Battle Summary

This battle was a bit forced as it was hard. The units you can use are limited to range units and since you can only use Foundation cards in Frontier Ranked, the pool on what you can use is a lot smaller. So, in this battle, I focused on the unit's stats like their health and armor even if I have to sacrifice a good ability such as Blast. I need to secure my frontline first and have my tank and then the rest comes after that. I don't remember having Sneak range units in the Frontier Ranked so I placed the weakest unit last and the units with the highest health and armor up front.

To see the full battle, you can click this link:
https://splinterlands.com/battle/sl_4a9fb01f1801d7f71952cc06a509cafa?ref=aiko2ne1

This battle felt a bit forced because of the limited units I can use in Frontier Ranked. I focused more on health and armor because I know Cripple will slowly destroy every unit anyway. Instead of chasing strong abilities I just made sure my frontline can last long enough. In the end I wasn't able to show how to use the modifier properly or everything I talked about because I am busy surviving in the battle I had at the time.

Posted Using INLEO